Community Sweats Provide Connection Between Northern Arapaho and Lander Locals 

White Buffalo Recovery Center plays an important role in combating substance abuse in the Lander area. The center—which started in Arapahoe serving Indigenous people but has grown to include all of Fremont County, Wyoming, including Lander—focuses on healing substance abuse, through many resources: AA and NA, beading and other traditional practices, language learning, intense grief work, as well as substance-free activities (fishing, hiking, softball, etc.) done within a community of people committed to sober living. Sweats are also used as part of the traditional healing process. Once a month all White Buffalo Recovery clients are invited to participate in a sweat, as is the community at large, regardless of ethnicity. This is an opportunity for healing in the individual but also for non-natives to experience Arapaho culture; the sweats help build bridges between cultures where tensions have existed for hundreds of years. These sweats are free to the community, but they are also challenging to carry out because of the work it takes transport the wood for the fires. Recognizing this challenge, sweat organizers reached out to LOR with the idea of purchasing a flat bed trailer to haul the wood. LOR’s funding will help support the purchase of the trailer and make it easier for White Buffalo to serve up to 40 people per sweat, creating an important moment of healing and connection across cultures.